and/or www.mantra.com/jai (Dr. Jai Maharaj)
2011-12-13 11:10:55 UTC
Rahul lacks sincerity
By A. Surya Prakash
Editorial
The Pioneer
http://www.dailypioneer.com
Monday, December 12, 2011
Despite trying hard for seven years to find his place in politics,
the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty is getting nowhere.
It is now seven years since Mr Rahul Gandhi made a formal entry into
national politics after successfully contesting the Lok Sabha
election from Amethi constituency in Uttar Pradesh in 2004. Three
years later, he was formally inducted into the Congress 'high
command' when he was appointed general secretary of the party. Over
these years Mr Gandhi has been trying to find his place in politics,
but the political dividends accruing to the party do not appear to be
commensurate with his labour. Unlike his father Rajiv Gandhi, who
caught the imagination of the nation with his 'Mr Clean' image when
he entered politics, the response to Mr Rahul Gandhi's political
forays in Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere has been nothing more than
lukewarm.
There could be many reasons for the absence of the 'Rajiv Gandhi
magic' and the indifferent public response. One can explain this away
by saying that the present political environment is extremely hostile
to the Congress and this could be reducing his chances of success.
But, apart from the external environment, two aspects of his
personality which could be contributing to his limited success are
lack of conviction and lack of courage.
Let us take a look at Mr Gandhi's conduct and utterances over the
last seven years and see whether he scores on any of these points --
commitment, sincerity and courage -- qualities that endear
politicians to people.
Mr Gandhi declared some years ago that if a member of his family had
been the Prime Minister in December 1992, the disputed Babri Masjid
structure would not have been razed to the ground. He was being
downright dishonest because it was his father Rajiv Gandhi who had
ensured the opening of the locks on the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi
structure when he was Prime Minister. Again, it was his father who
had sent Home Minister Buta Singh to Ayodhya to participate in the
shilanyas ceremony for the Ram Mandir just weeks before the Lok Sabha
election in November 1989.
In other words, Rajiv Gandhi enabled Hindus to offer prayers at the
site and thereafter put his Government's stamp of approval on the
Vishwa Hindu Parishad's idea of building a 'Bhavya Mandir' for Ram.
After all this, Rahul Gandhi wants us to believe that if Rajiv Gandhi
had been Prime Minister in December 1992, the Babri Masjid structure
would not have fallen. This is an attempt by the scion of the Nehru-
Gandhi dynasty to fool the Muslims, to portray PV Narasimha Rao, the
Prime Minister in 1992, as a villain, and to pretend as if members of
his family had no role whatsoever in the events leading to December
6, 1992. This is a crude, dishonest attempt to falsify history.
More recently, when the scams relating to the Commonwealth Games,
Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society and 2G surfaced, people across the
country were horrified at the extent to which public servants could
go to feather their own nests and rob the nation of its wealth. The
youth were particularly exercised over these scandals and became
vocal participants in the anti-corruption movement spear-headed by
Anna Hazare. While all this was on, the nation's 'youth icon' and the
Congress's heir apparent virtually went off the political radar.
Mr Gandhi was reluctant to speak up against corruption because if he
did, he would be seen as speaking against his own Government. Had he
spoken up, he would have fallen foul of the Congress's allies like
the DMK. Also, he would have had to face uncomfortable questions vis-
à-vis Bofors and other scandals. Yet, this was a risk worth taking
because it would have put him in the vanguard of the anti-corruption
movement. But this was not to be. Instead, it is Anna Hazare who
holds the reins of the anti-corruption movement and has caught the
imagination of the youth. Mr Gandhi has been reduced to reading out
written speeches hailing Mr Hazare and demanding the establishment of
a strong Lok Pal.
Apart from lacking in sincerity and courage, he is given to making
bizarre statements when he is caught off guard or when he strays from
the written text. Some years ago, when a correspondent of a weekly
magazine caught up with him in Amethi, he claimed that he could have
become Prime Minister when he attained the age of 25 but he had
chosen not to because he "did not want to shout at his seniors". In
recent times, he has strayed from the script and landed in trouble,
like when he asked his audience at Phulpur how long would they go to
Maharastra "to beg". The people of Uttar Pradesh felt offended by
this remark because a majority of those who migrate from the State
are skilled workers who pick up well-paying jobs in other parts of
the country.
Mr Gandhi is also given to making strange claims about his
interventions. For example, after reading out the text of a prepared
speech in the Lok Sabha on the Lok Pal issue, he told mediapersons
outside Parliament that his statement was "a game-changer". Is it not
strange for someone to make such a claim about his own speech? Is he
naïve or disingenuous? The jury is still out.
Another aspect of his persona which has now come to notice is his
disrespect for Parliament. Although he is one of the younger MPs, he
seems to take Parliament for granted, something which even
parliamentarians of the stature of Indrajit Gupta or Mr Atal Bihari
Vajpayee never did. Mr Gandhi's disrespect for this institution came
through when he set off on a five-day yatra of Uttar Pradesh
beginning November 22, the opening day of the Winter Session of
Parliament.
Finally, a word about sycophancy. It must be admitted that sycophancy
had come down substantially after Ms Sonia Gandhi took over the reins
of the Congress. Compared to the heyday of Mrs Indira Gandhi when
Congress president Dev Kant Barooah declared "Indira is India and
India is Indira", the times have changed. Yet, there is no shortage
of people who try this old trick to catch the attention of the Nehru-
Gandhis. At the recent Youth Congress convention, a member of the
Congress Working Committee hailed Mr Gandhi for leading the biggest
youth movement, the kind which had not been seen even in China or
Russia. As Mr Gandhi prepares for a bigger role in the party, are we
in for a return of sycophancy as in the 1970s?
http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/item/50663-rahul-lacks-sincerity.html
More at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com
More at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com
Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti
-----
About the Goon Squad:
---------------------------------------------------------------------
A goon is a bully or thug who terrorizes or tries to do away with
opposition.
"Myself, Mallu. Yourself?" (V. Bhattathiri) <***@gmail.com>
tries his best to be a bully -- telling others what and when to post,
where to post and where not to post, deliberately publishing lies
about others, stalking and abusing them with hate speech -- but fails
miserably. He is really stressed out, and like his lap dog Prem
Thomas (who currently posts as "P. Rajah", and issues death threats
to people), is priming himself for conditions such as stroke and
heart disease.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
fair use of copyrighted works.
o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are
not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information
go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
copyright owner.
Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.
By A. Surya Prakash
Editorial
The Pioneer
http://www.dailypioneer.com
Monday, December 12, 2011
Despite trying hard for seven years to find his place in politics,
the scion of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty is getting nowhere.
It is now seven years since Mr Rahul Gandhi made a formal entry into
national politics after successfully contesting the Lok Sabha
election from Amethi constituency in Uttar Pradesh in 2004. Three
years later, he was formally inducted into the Congress 'high
command' when he was appointed general secretary of the party. Over
these years Mr Gandhi has been trying to find his place in politics,
but the political dividends accruing to the party do not appear to be
commensurate with his labour. Unlike his father Rajiv Gandhi, who
caught the imagination of the nation with his 'Mr Clean' image when
he entered politics, the response to Mr Rahul Gandhi's political
forays in Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere has been nothing more than
lukewarm.
There could be many reasons for the absence of the 'Rajiv Gandhi
magic' and the indifferent public response. One can explain this away
by saying that the present political environment is extremely hostile
to the Congress and this could be reducing his chances of success.
But, apart from the external environment, two aspects of his
personality which could be contributing to his limited success are
lack of conviction and lack of courage.
Let us take a look at Mr Gandhi's conduct and utterances over the
last seven years and see whether he scores on any of these points --
commitment, sincerity and courage -- qualities that endear
politicians to people.
Mr Gandhi declared some years ago that if a member of his family had
been the Prime Minister in December 1992, the disputed Babri Masjid
structure would not have been razed to the ground. He was being
downright dishonest because it was his father Rajiv Gandhi who had
ensured the opening of the locks on the Babri Masjid-Ram Janmabhoomi
structure when he was Prime Minister. Again, it was his father who
had sent Home Minister Buta Singh to Ayodhya to participate in the
shilanyas ceremony for the Ram Mandir just weeks before the Lok Sabha
election in November 1989.
In other words, Rajiv Gandhi enabled Hindus to offer prayers at the
site and thereafter put his Government's stamp of approval on the
Vishwa Hindu Parishad's idea of building a 'Bhavya Mandir' for Ram.
After all this, Rahul Gandhi wants us to believe that if Rajiv Gandhi
had been Prime Minister in December 1992, the Babri Masjid structure
would not have fallen. This is an attempt by the scion of the Nehru-
Gandhi dynasty to fool the Muslims, to portray PV Narasimha Rao, the
Prime Minister in 1992, as a villain, and to pretend as if members of
his family had no role whatsoever in the events leading to December
6, 1992. This is a crude, dishonest attempt to falsify history.
More recently, when the scams relating to the Commonwealth Games,
Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society and 2G surfaced, people across the
country were horrified at the extent to which public servants could
go to feather their own nests and rob the nation of its wealth. The
youth were particularly exercised over these scandals and became
vocal participants in the anti-corruption movement spear-headed by
Anna Hazare. While all this was on, the nation's 'youth icon' and the
Congress's heir apparent virtually went off the political radar.
Mr Gandhi was reluctant to speak up against corruption because if he
did, he would be seen as speaking against his own Government. Had he
spoken up, he would have fallen foul of the Congress's allies like
the DMK. Also, he would have had to face uncomfortable questions vis-
à-vis Bofors and other scandals. Yet, this was a risk worth taking
because it would have put him in the vanguard of the anti-corruption
movement. But this was not to be. Instead, it is Anna Hazare who
holds the reins of the anti-corruption movement and has caught the
imagination of the youth. Mr Gandhi has been reduced to reading out
written speeches hailing Mr Hazare and demanding the establishment of
a strong Lok Pal.
Apart from lacking in sincerity and courage, he is given to making
bizarre statements when he is caught off guard or when he strays from
the written text. Some years ago, when a correspondent of a weekly
magazine caught up with him in Amethi, he claimed that he could have
become Prime Minister when he attained the age of 25 but he had
chosen not to because he "did not want to shout at his seniors". In
recent times, he has strayed from the script and landed in trouble,
like when he asked his audience at Phulpur how long would they go to
Maharastra "to beg". The people of Uttar Pradesh felt offended by
this remark because a majority of those who migrate from the State
are skilled workers who pick up well-paying jobs in other parts of
the country.
Mr Gandhi is also given to making strange claims about his
interventions. For example, after reading out the text of a prepared
speech in the Lok Sabha on the Lok Pal issue, he told mediapersons
outside Parliament that his statement was "a game-changer". Is it not
strange for someone to make such a claim about his own speech? Is he
naïve or disingenuous? The jury is still out.
Another aspect of his persona which has now come to notice is his
disrespect for Parliament. Although he is one of the younger MPs, he
seems to take Parliament for granted, something which even
parliamentarians of the stature of Indrajit Gupta or Mr Atal Bihari
Vajpayee never did. Mr Gandhi's disrespect for this institution came
through when he set off on a five-day yatra of Uttar Pradesh
beginning November 22, the opening day of the Winter Session of
Parliament.
Finally, a word about sycophancy. It must be admitted that sycophancy
had come down substantially after Ms Sonia Gandhi took over the reins
of the Congress. Compared to the heyday of Mrs Indira Gandhi when
Congress president Dev Kant Barooah declared "Indira is India and
India is Indira", the times have changed. Yet, there is no shortage
of people who try this old trick to catch the attention of the Nehru-
Gandhis. At the recent Youth Congress convention, a member of the
Congress Working Committee hailed Mr Gandhi for leading the biggest
youth movement, the kind which had not been seen even in China or
Russia. As Mr Gandhi prepares for a bigger role in the party, are we
in for a return of sycophancy as in the 1970s?
http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/item/50663-rahul-lacks-sincerity.html
More at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com
More at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com
Jai Maharaj, Jyotishi
Om Shanti
-----
About the Goon Squad:
---------------------------------------------------------------------
A goon is a bully or thug who terrorizes or tries to do away with
opposition.
"Myself, Mallu. Yourself?" (V. Bhattathiri) <***@gmail.com>
tries his best to be a bully -- telling others what and when to post,
where to post and where not to post, deliberately publishing lies
about others, stalking and abusing them with hate speech -- but fails
miserably. He is really stressed out, and like his lap dog Prem
Thomas (who currently posts as "P. Rajah", and issues death threats
to people), is priming himself for conditions such as stroke and
heart disease.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
fair use of copyrighted works.
o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are
not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information
go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
copyright owner.
Since newsgroup posts are being removed
by forgery by one or more net terrorists,
this post may be reposted several times.